Unusual Militant Activity in Georgia (Dispatch)
Video Transcript:
Video Transcript
Georgia conducted security operations along its northeastern border with Russia Aug. 29 in pursuit of a group of kidnappers reported to be militants. Georgia claims that the group came from the Russian republic of Dagestan. While there is a precedent for cross-border militant movement in the region, attacks are rare in this specific area. However, the wider region has seen no shortage of instability from a number of factors, including violence within Dagestan and tensions between Georgia and Russia.
A Georgian Interior Ministry spokesperson reported Aug. 29 that Georgian security forces had been deployed to the village of Lapankuri in northeastern Georgia to track down a group of up to 20 militants. These militants have allegedly been kidnapping Georgian citizens over the past three days. Georgian officials claim that security forces have freed 10 hostages, while other reports say only five were released. It is hard to know how successful the Georgian operation was, because it is unclear how many hostages were taken in total.
Russian officials are giving conflicting reports on the situation. Interfax news agency is quoting officials denying that any militants crossed into Georgia while RIA Novosti is quoting Dagestani law enforcement officials admitting that members of a specific criminal group did cross into Georgia. Generally, more specific reporting is more accurate, so the Dagestani official may be more believable. However, each side -- the Georgians, Russians and Dagestanis -- have their own political agendas for reporting this, so the situation remains far from clear.
The village of Lapankuri, where the operation took place, does not typically see such violence or militant activity. However, the wider region of Kakheti in eastern Georgia is no stranger to North Caucasus militant movements. In the early 2000s, the Pankisi Gorge was frequently used by Chechen militants as a safe haven from Russian security forces. More recently, the Georgian break-away regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia have seen far more militant activity along their borders stemming back to the 2008 Russia-Georgia war.
While Chechnya has stabilized over the past decade, neighboring Dagestan has continued to be a hotbed of militant activity. Most of that militant activity has been focused internally. Suicide attacks and bombings against Russian security forces and local police are a common occurrence there. But it's unclear why Dagestani militants would want to conduct attacks in Georgia. Engaging in kidnapping, taking hostages and generally causing trouble is not conducive to hiding out. It is possible that the kidnappers were acting out of criminal intent - looking to make money through ransom payments from the hostage's families. This does not rule out the possibility that they were militants, too, since militants also need to raise money. We also cannot rule out that the kidnappers were local and mistaken as Dagestani.
The greater Caucasus region is rife with militant activity that has plagued Russian, Georgian and Azerbaijani security forces. While relations between those three countries remain stable for now, escalations in militant activity can quickly change those balances. A known entity like Dagestani militants seemingly changing tactics by capturing hostages across the border in Georgia appears to be an escalation in activity. However, details remain too muddled for now to determine how widespread the consequences will be.
